Can excess use of xanax cause narcolepsy?

Answer 1

The use of Xanax absolutely does not cause narcolepsy, though severe drowsiness may be common in some who use this medication. Narcolepsy is an irreversible life-long condition which is a REM sleep disorder - the major symptoms of narcolepsy include excessive daytime sleepiness, hypnagogic hallucinations, sleep paralysis and cataplexy - though not all four of the major symptoms are experienced by all narcoleptics. Research in recent years has suggested narcolepsy is predominantly experienced in those who have autoimmune destruction of the hypothalamic protein, orexin/hypocretin. Xanax absolutely does not "cause" narcolepsy, and merely produces symptoms of sleepiness as a possible side effect which are resolved when the medication wears off. A better explanation for this symptom is to say "Xanax made me drowsy." It is ill-advised and potentially insulting to those who do have a narcolepsy diagnosis to claim to develop a chronic, life-long condition rather than accurately state you experienced adverse drug effects.